Commentary circulating online following the Alberta referendum court ruling is incorrectly claiming that provinces cannot legally hold referendums on separation or sovereignty.

That is not what Canadian constitutional law says.

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Columnist Andrew Coyne claimed Canadians “can’t lawfully hold a referendum” on “the sovereign territory of Canada.”

Imagine that. Turns out you can’t lawfully hold a referendum on whether to take something that isn’t yours: like land covered by treaties, or the sovereign territory of Canada. https://t.co/wgbWdfa7GQ

— Andrew Coyne 🇺🇦🇮🇱🇬🇪🇲🇩 (@acoyne) May 13, 2026

But Canada has already held two provincial sovereignty referendums in Quebec, in 1980 and 1995.

Neither referendum was declared illegal.

In fact, the federal government responded to the 1995 referendum by asking the Supreme Court of Canada to clarify the legal framework surrounding secession in the 1998 Secession Reference decision.

The court concluded that a province cannot unilaterally separate from Canada under existing constitutional law. However, it also held that a clear vote on a clear question in favour of secession would create a constitutional obligation for governments to negotiate.

That framework later formed the basis of the Clarity Act.

The opening section of the Clarity Act explicitly states:

“the government of any province of Canada is entitled to consult its population by referendum on any issue”

That passage was highlighted online by Macdonald-Laurier Institute's Heather Exner-Pirot following Coyne’s comments.

Are we now saying in Canada you can't have referendums on sovereignty?
The Clarity Act says otherwise.
There is no way QC is not joining AB on appealing this. https://t.co/lADKbxH31k https://t.co/N05GahN77w pic.twitter.com/Hf2sMXV1qd

— Heather Exner-Pirot (@ExnerPirot) May 13, 2026

Canadian law therefore distinguishes between:

• holding a referendum on sovereignty or independence, and
• legally completing secession from Canada.

The first has already occurred in Canada.

The second would require constitutional negotiations involving the federal government and other provinces.

The existence of the Clarity Act itself is evidence that Canadian law contemplates the possibility of sovereignty referendums, rather than prohibiting them outright.